Spearfish Post Office (Old) · Photo: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0Black Hills State University is 2 miles from Mountain Plains
No college sits inside Mountain Plains’ boundary, but Black Hills State University’s campus in Spearfish, with 2,135 students on campus, is 2 miles from the center of town, and Western Dakota Technical College is 43.3 miles away in Rapid City. About 4% of Mountain Plains’ residents are enrolled in college, about the same as South Dakota (5%).
From the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard, June 2026; IPEDS fall 2023 enrollment) and the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, 2020–24. Straight-line distances from the center of Mountain Plains. Colleges are described, not graded.
What stands out about college from Mountain Plains
Facts about the town and its distance to campus; each college’s own figures follow.
Colleges within 15 miles of Mountain Plains
It is public. Every other college is more than 15 miles from Mountain Plains.
Degree-granting colleges with 100 or more students on campus (fall 2023 enrollment, minus students who study only online). Admitted: share of applicants offered a place. Net price: the average a year after grants, for students on federal aid. Graduate: within 6 years (4-year colleges) or 3 (2-year). Earnings: median, 10 years after starting.
What would your family pay?
The average a year after grants, for families on federal aid, at the colleges within 15 miles. Pick your family’s income.
Starts at Over $110k, where Mountain Plains’ median household income ($248,558) falls.
The average a year after grants and scholarships, for first-time, full-time students on federal aid, from the College Scorecard. Your own price depends on your aid package; every college has a net price calculator. For community colleges the net price counts housing and food at full cost, so tuition is shown beside it. “—”: not reported for that income.
Do students finish, and does it pay?
Each dot is a college within 15 miles of Mountain Plains: across is the share who graduate, up is what they earn ten years after starting.
Graduation: first-time, full-time students within 6 years (4-year colleges) or 3 years (2-year). Earnings: median, 10 years after starting, for students who got federal aid.
Questions about college near Mountain Plains
Is Mountain Plains a college town?
No. About 4 of every 100 Mountain Plains residents are enrolled in college (Census, 2020–24), about the same as South Dakota (5). The nearest campus, Black Hills State University, is 2 miles away in Spearfish.
What colleges are near Mountain Plains?
Within 15 miles: Black Hills State University (2 miles, 2,135 students on campus).
What is the closest community college to Mountain Plains, and what does it cost?
Western Dakota Technical College in Rapid City, 43.3 miles away. Tuition and fees are $8,294 a year for South Dakota residents; the federal net price, $12,670, counts housing and food at full cost.
How much does Black Hills State University cost if we live in South Dakota?
Tuition and fees are $8,764 a year in-state and $11,866 from out of state. After grants, families on federal aid paid an average of $11,863 (under $30,000 income) to $18,604 (over $110,000), housing and food included.
Neighbors talk college
Students, parents, alumni and the neighbors next door.
Colleges: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard and IPEDS (Scorecard 06/10/2026 · IPEDS 2024 · fall 2023 enrollment). “On campus” is fall enrollment minus students who study only online. Distances are straight-line from the center of Mountain Plains. Residents in college, age, rent and poverty (including poverty without college students, table B14006): U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–24. Colleges are described, not graded; the College town label marks towns where 15% or more of residents are enrolled. How TownRatings describes colleges →